MEDIA RELEASE

Dads for Life launches Fathers@Schools and Dads for Life official website to engage fathers in diverse communities

The online and school spheres are new targets of the Dads for Life movement, in its bid to get more fathers involved in their children’s lives. This marks the second wave of initiatives following the launch of the movement and mass distribution of fathers’ toolkits in November 2009.

2          The Fathers@Schools programme leverages on schools as key platforms to reach out to fathers. A 2009 MCYS survey of 218 Primary and Secondary School Administrators on Parental Involvement in Schools shows wide affirmation of the importance of father involvement in the school environment. 98% of those surveyed agreed that father involvement in schools was good for the child and that father involvement had distinct benefits. The survey also showed that while all schools ran activities to engage both mothers and fathers, in most activities, fathers made up less than 30% of total participation.

3          The Fathers Action Network, a workgroup of the National Family Council,  led by Chairman Richard Seow, hopes that the Fathers@Schools programme will see father participation levels improve over time.  Schools onboard the programme will receive funding of up to $2000 annually to encourage the formation of a father group and to support the organization of father-focused activities. 55 schools have already signed up on the programme and have begun organising father-focused activities such as father-child bonding camps and sports programmes (See Annex for list of schools).

4          The Fathers Action Network has also developed a Resource and Development Guide that captures some of the international best practices of father engagement in schools as well as local examples of schools’ father-focused activities.  Mr Seow said, “We hope that the sharing by selected schools and the Resource and Development Guide will provide ideas, guidance and inspiration for schools to consider engaging fathers and work towards starting a fathers’ group within their schools. “

5          As part of the initial drive for Fathers@Schools, a Dads for Life Blog Contest for Primary and Secondary Schools, will begin on 1 April 2010. Students are invited to create a blog entry (in a video, blog post or drawing) to complete the phrase “You’re my Dad for Life and I’m really happy when you...”. The top ten individual winners from both primary and secondary schools levels will win Nintendo Wiis with 2 controllers.  In addition, the top primary and secondary school entries will win their schools an IRTLab Future Classroom worth $5000. Contest details are available at   [http://contest.dadsforlife.sg ].

6          The Network is also working with several partner organisations, including SAFRA, Singapore Bowling Federation and the Singapore Scouts Association to develop more customised father-child programmes that schools can tap on.   

7          Schools onboard Fathers@Schools and fathers from all walks of life can also turn to the Dads for Life website [www.dadsforlife.sg] for help in their journeys. The website, intended to be a resource and networking portal for all fathers, individuals and communities supporting fathers in Singapore will feature easy-to-read research and parenting articles, a community forum, an events calendar for fathers and their families and regular parenting tips for fathers. These features are intended to help fathers embrace their important fathering roles, provide them with some practical tips to help them in these roles and to anchor them in a larger community whose resources and expertise they can draw from.   To maximise its online reach, Dads for Life will also establish a parallel presence on other popular social media portals such as Facebook and Twitter so that fathers can connect with one another at all times.

8                    The website will include a “Featured Dad” section to celebrate the diversity of fatherhood experiences in Singapore. Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, who is the Guest of Honour at the launch event, says, “The stories – shared candidly by stay-at-home dads, adoptive dads, single dads, struggling dads and everyday dads – are a reminder that each of us has a special and unique role in the lives of our children.”

Issued by:

Dads for Life Secretariat

1 April 2010

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ABOUT DADS FOR LIFE

The “Dads for Life” Movement is an initiative of the National Family Council (NFC), and supported by the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS).  Launched in November 2009, the movement seeks to inspire and involve fathers to become good influencers in their children’s lives... for life by getting Fathers to ACT:

A  - Be Aware of the importance of fathers’ roles

C  - Commit to be good fathers and role models to their children

T  - Spend Time, Acquire Tools, bring Transformation to lives.

“Dads for Life” is driven by the Fathers Action Network.

ABOUT THE FATHERS ACTION NETWORK

The Fathers Action Network (FAN) is a people-sector led network with members from various organisations and business enterprises.  Heading this network is Mr Richard Seow, Non-Executive Vice Chairman of Parkway Holdings Limited.  As a consultative network for father-related issues and programmes, FAN will seek to increase awareness and knowledge about the critical impact of fathers’ involvement on their children’s lives; identify and leverage multi-sectoral resources - across Government, community, employers, schools, and families, to support fathers in their co-parenting roles; and empower and support fathers in their roles as parents. 

ABOUT THE NATIONAL FAMILY COUNCIL

The National Family Council (NFC) is a people-sector Council formed on 1 May 2006 to champion and promote the building of resilient families, and provide a voice of the people on family issues.   It is an advisory and consultative body for family-related policies, issues and programmes. The NFC is headed by Mr Lim Soon Hock, Chairman of Centre for Fathering. For more information about the NFC, please visit: http://www.nfc.org.sg .

Media Contact

Ms Jasmine Paul

Dads for Life Secretariat

Tel: 6354 7011

Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it / This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

 Annex